Between a 4-bedroom condominium or a 4-bedrooms landed property, which will you choose?
Setting the premise, we can put the budget estimate at around S$2.5 million. There is interest to purchase a 4-bedroom unit. We are also looking at a traditional landed property and not cluster housing.
Looking at your lifestyle needs
Lifestyle needs is one of the most important factors when choosing between a condominium or a landed property. If you are looking at a 4-bedrooms unit, you are likely to have a big family living together.
Considering the needs of your family, one might fit better than the other. For example, if you have elderly and young children living in the unit, you would prefer a single-storey house with no stairs. In that case, a condominium unit will be a better choice as the possibility of getting a single-level 4-bedroom unit is easier than getting a single-level 4-bedroom landed property.
Children would also affect the ultimate buying decision. For buyers who prefer to have their children interact with their neighbours’ in a secure compound, a condominium unit would be a better choice. Some of my clients even have Whatsapp groups where they will plan kids’ play activities together in the condominium. But if members of the family would prefer to have their own space, a landed property will probably be better suited as they tend to have bigger rooms.
In addition, if you do own pets, they will definitely appreciate the yard that landed properties have to offer. They can roam around with lots of space. A big plus is that bringing your dog out to walk is as simple as walking out the front door as parks are generally nearby to landed property estates too.
Considering flexibility in housing modifications
Is having a customized layout plan drawn to suit your preferences important to you? Do you want the facade of the house that you are living in to be more creative?
In the case, it would be better to buy a landed property. In general, landed property owners have more flexibility in alterations as long as they are within the rules of the Building Construction Authority (BCA). For condominiums, most of the management committees require the building to look uniform externally. Sometimes, even the colour of your blinds installed will have to be approved by the managing agent!
Maintenance Fee
The maintenance of the unit is another key consideration that you have to keep in mind. For a condominium, you have to pay a monthly maintenance fee and a common fund to maintain the common area and facilities of even if you do not use the facilities. However, if there are problems relating to the common area and facilities, the cost will be spread out across of the owners in the condominium. This means your share will be lower.
For landed property owners, although there is no need to pay a monthly maintenance charge, you have to pay any costs in full. This includes periodic pest control, lift maintenance, gate maintenance, pool cleaning and roof-related issues in addition to the internal leakages, electrical and plumbing works.
Studying price movements of these property types
Lastly, we will be looking at price movements of the condominium and landed property. You should also think about which is a better investment if you plan to sell it after.
Of course, there is no crystal ball to predict what will be the prices in the future. However, we do have historic data extrapolated from 2000 to 2019.
Looking at the per square foot price of the average landed property, there is an increase a total of 132%. Whereas for the average condominium, it increased relatively lesser at 103% over the 20-year period. On an average yearly growth rate, the landed property segment increased 6.59% while the condominium segment increased 5.14%.
On hindsight, the landed segment performed better. Taking a closer look at the graph in recent times, from 2016 onwards, prices remain relatively stable, increasing steadily over time for both segments.
Do note that the restriction placed on landed property market, the segment is reserved only for Singapore Citizens. If permanent residents are looking to own a unit, they will need to seek the approval of the Singapore Land Authority Land Dealings Approval Unit (LDAU), making it more exclusive to own a unit as opposed to the condominium property market that is open to all to buy including foreigners.
Contact Us
So after considering these, you might be wondering which to use out of the many units out there? You want to beat the average price increase in the market when it comes to the time to sell?
If you have questions or if you are thinking about properly showcasing your house for sale, whatsapp message or call KC from Home Quarters and begin finding your new home today: +65 8809 2889! Or drop us an email, commenting on our YouTube or contacting us through our Facebook and Instagram pages! If you would like to schedule a virtual viewing, that is also possible – you can read all about what you need to look out for during a property virtual viewing here before COVID-19 end.
Thatβs it for this article! Stay safe everybody, and remember, call Home Quarters and start packing!
